Lettre d'amour
by sugarquill1988
Summary: Rachel Berry didn't need to fall in love but one class and one man changed all of that! Finchel, AU. Rated M for safety
1. Prologue

Disclaimer: I wish I owned Rachel Berry and the other Glee characters, but alas Ryan Murphy has that honor.

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><p>I slammed my books down onto my desk before flinging myself onto my four poster bed. Why was it so important for me to know my peers? I was destined to be a star. I didn't need to make new friends.<p>

It was my final year of high school and my main focus was to get the lead in the school musical, win Nationals for the Glee club and get good grades. Was that too much to ask for? Obviously it was.

You see my English teacher; Ms Elliot had decided to implement a system that would require us seniors to get to know one another in an anonymous fashion, a system that would allow us to communicate without prejudice.

I was personally all for the idea until those two dreaded words left her mouth.

_Pen Pals_

Just thinking about those two words made me grown. Sitting up, I found myself crossing my arms and frowning.

I, Rachel Berry did not need a pen pal!


	2. Writing Letters

AN: Thanks to those who reviewed the prologue! I really appreciate it. I must warn you that this chapter haven't been beta'd at all, so all mistakes are mine. Anyway, enjoy the next chapter

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Glee characters. Although I do wish I owned Finn Hudson

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><p><strong>Pen Pal Task Rules<strong>

No.1 – All letters must be written anonymously. You are not allowed to put in any personal information e.g. your name, address, phone number etc

No.2 – Each student will receive a letterbox number that will be located in the front office of the school. This is where you will collect your letters from (please ensure that you check your letter box everyday)

No.3 – All letters are to be put into envelopes and handed to the front office staff. You must clearly mark your pen pals letter box number on the front of the envelope. They will then distribute your letters into the appropriate places.

No.4 – At the end of the school year we will be holding a masquerade dance. This is the chance for you to meet your pen pal face to face. You must inform your pen pal if you do or do not wish to meet and make the proper arrangements.

No.5 – The most important rule is to have fun

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><p>I stared blankly at the piece of lined paper in front of me. Normally I was great under pressure but right now I felt like the world was caving in on me. That probably sounds over-dramatic but that's who I am. Rachel Berry the dramatic diva of the school that no one likes. Sure I have a few friends from Glee club but they don't really socialize with me outside of Glee, let alone outside of school.<p>

_To Whom Ever This Letter Concerns_

Yeah that sounds just as brilliant as the other 5 attempts at starting this stupid letter. I wasn't exactly thrilled that someone would be reading my letters. I knew what most of them thought of me already. I glanced around the classroom to see what everyone else was doing. As it so happens I am the only person struggling to write a letter to an anonymous person.

Right at the front of the class was Jacob Ben Israel; he wasn't such a bad person once you got past his stalker like tendencies. He had taken it upon himself to constantly follow me around. I wasn't sure whether to feel flattered or freaked out but the star in me kept saying that this was just a test run for when I had millions of adoring fans, some of which would probably turn out to be like Jacob.

In the seat just behind him sat Santana Lopez and Brittany Pierce. They were both on the cheer-leading squad and felt the need to yell abuse at me every time we passed each other in the hall. I didn't care that I wasn't as pretty as they were, I was the next Barbra Streisand and once I made it on Broadway they would be an insignificant speck from my past.

Sitting in the far back corner were Mike Chang, Noah Puckerman, Sam Evans and Quinn Fabray. Out of all my tormentors it was Quinn and Noah that caused me the most grief. It started first day of junior year. I was walking, well more like running down the corridor as I was late for my first class when out of nowhere I was hit with the coldest, wettest substance known to man. At the time I wasn't aware of anything except for the pain my face was experiencing and the laughs of the students around me. After that it was customary for Noah or Quinn to give me a slushy facial before lunch. However, Mike and Sam weren't so bad. They were at least nice to me in the hallways and they were always nice to me during our Chemistry class.

Looking to the space next to me I spotted Mercedes Jones, Kurt Hummel and Artie Abrams. They were all writing furiously onto their pieces of paper. At least they had found something decent to write. All 3 of them were in Glee club with me. They were nice enough during Glee but once we stepped outside of the choir room they left me to fend for myself, not that I minded.

Turning around as discreetly as I could my eyes landed on the one person I despised the most; Finn Hudson. He was the star quarter back for the football team, all the guys wanted to be him and all the girls wanted to date him. Well every girl besides me, I was focusing on my dream remember. I guess Finn is what you would call a player. He was out with a new girl every weekend and even though he wasn't out right mean to me like the rest of the footballers or cheerleaders, there was nothing I hated more than a man who didn't treat a woman right.

Swiveling back around in my chair before I was caught staring, I realized I still had nothing to write about. Ms Elliot had told us that our first letter had to be finished by the end of the class so we could start getting to know one another as soon as possible.

I glanced back down at my lined paper before taking another look at the rules of this task. This assignment was going to be the end of me. Taking a quick look around the room again I raised my hand and waited to be acknowledged by the teacher.

"What is it Rachel?" she sighed. I could already hear the other students start to murmur as soon as my name was mentioned.

"I am having trouble finding something to write about and wondered if you could give me any pointers" I replied. It was then that I heard the voice of Quinn ring out across the room.

"How can you not have anything to say man hands? You never shut up" she sneered. The rest of the class chuckled at her immature attempt to put me down. Sure my hands weren't all girly like hers were. I could at least inflict damage if I ever felt the need to punch her in the face.

"I don't know Rachel; you only have 5 minutes of class left so just write the first thing that comes to your mind." Ms Elliott responded, completely ignoring Quinn's interruption.

"Well that was helpful" I muttered to myself, glancing back down at my piece of paper. I placed my pen back down on the paper and sat there thinking. What would a future star have to write about? It was then that inspiration struck and I began writing line after line.

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><p><em>To Whom It May Concern,<em>

_While this isn't my normal way of communication, I find myself __forced, no__ coerced into writing this letter. As you can probably see from the above attempts, I really have no idea what to say to you. _

_I guess I should start by informing you that I'm nervous and this isn't something that happens to me often. While I don't approve the teachers__ asking us to do this task, I think our school needs it. I don't want to get overly talkative in this first letter and bore you to death so I will leave it short and sweet. _

_I hope that through these letters we can develop some sort of understanding or even friendship. Do we have a deal? _

_Sincerely,  
>Anonymous<em>

Putting my pen down I re-read the letter a few times before finally smiling and putting the now folded letter into the provided envelope. I walked to the front of the room and handed the sealed envelope to Ms Elliott and walked out of the classroom praying that Quinn or Noah had forgotten that it was almost lunch time and they hadn't slushied me yet.

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><p><strong>Reviews are the best gifts ever :)<strong>


	3. First Impressions

**AN: Sorry it has taken me so long to finish this chapter but I have been so busy with my uni work and looking after my kids that only now have I been able to sit down and really write. I apologise again for any errors and would like to thank everyone for their reviews :)**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Rachel Berry or any other Glee characters.**

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><p>It had been 5 days.<p>

5 days since I wrote the letter and I still hadn't received a reply. It wasn't like I really cared if I got a reply or anything; I had better things to do with my time. First there was the massive amount of homework that the teachers felt the need to give us. I mean seriously who thought it was a good idea to give us seniors that much work in our last year. Don't get me wrong, I love homework. I would just rather be focusing on my impending stardom and Broadway career then having to sit down every night and to complete a worksheet that I could do in my sleep. Second I had this week's Glee Club topic. We had to perform a song from a rock band. I admit, rock isn't my favourite style of music but in the end it is a chance to broaden my musical talent.

As of right now I am currently making my way to the front office. I decided to do the right thing and stop by there before and after school just to make sure that I hadn't yet received a letter. It was an amazing system that the teachers had worked out. After re-reading the rules for the tenth time I thought having our 'addresses' on our letter boxes would give away who we were sending messages to. However the teachers had implemented a colour code system. The front office staff had our name, 'address' and attached to a letter box colour. I was thankful that my teacher knew me well enough to give me the pink letter box.

Making a right turn and walking through to where the letter boxes were kept I prayed silently, hoping that I had something waiting for me. I would be kidding myself if I didn't secretly want someone to talk to. I held my breath as I lifted the lid to my bright pink letter box. As I peered down I saw a envelope waiting for me. Reaching in and pulling it out I couldn't help but smile. I was so thankful that I had actually received a letter. I carefully put the lid back down and walked out of the office and to my car.

I made it home within 10 minutes and practically ran inside. Saying a quick hello to my daddy who was in the kitchen preparing dinner, I skipped up the stairs and into my room. Putting my bag into its rightful place, I grabbed the letter that I put in the front pocket and sat at my desk. It wasn't until now that I realized I was nervous about what the letter would contain. I really hoped that this person was nice and that we both enjoyed the same things. It would be rather dull if we had to write to one another and found that we didn't have anything to talk about. Opening the envelope I pulled the letter out carefully and unfolded it. The handwriting on the page wasn't very neat but it wasn't overly messy either. At least I could read the writing that was on the page. Taking another deep breath I began to take in the words on the piece of paper.

_Dear Anonymous,_

_Hi. It's safe to say that you're not alone in that respect. Our school these past few years has become a madhouse full of fakes and wannabe's. Why can't everyone just accept who they are and not what they assume they're supposed to be? All I know is that the people I'm surrounded by, except for a few, are only there because of who I am. So yes, I am definitely interested in a friendship not ruled by names and ranks. Personality is the key. So I think one of us should start a conversation that doesn't have to do with formalities. Let's see… How is your homework going? Is it me or do all of the teachers suddenly hate us?_

_Sincerely,  
>JB<em>

I put the letter down and smiled. I liked this person already. Looking at the clock I realized I only had 45 minutes before my ballet lesson and that I needed to finish my chemistry homework before I left. Putting my letter aside I fumbled through my bag and grabbed out my chemistry text book and the worksheet before setting out to complete the first question.

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><p>I went over to my sports bag and put my ballet slippers into it carefully. Tonight's class hadn't gone so well. Not only was I worried about my chemistry homework I hadn't managed to complete. I kept thinking about the mystery person who had written me that letter. I could tell that my dance partner Jesse was not impressed with my lack of concentration tonight. He was constantly whispering "concentrate" and "what is the matter with you?" into my ear throughout the dance number we were running through. As I slipped my grey hoodie on I felt someones presence behind me. I knew who it was before I turned around but his close proximity had me jumping back a little.<p>

"Go out with me" he blurted out at me. This was becoming like a ritual between us. We would dance together and then after class Jesse would come over and ask me out. It wasn't like I didn't find him attractive because I did. It was more the fact that he was a pompous ass who thought he had more talent in his pinkie finger than I had in my whole body.

"We have been through this before Jesse" I sighed. I had hoped the last time this happened he had gotten the message. Obviously he was a little thicker in the head then I thought.

"Come on Rach" Jesse smile. His use of my nickname made me cringe. "It's just dinner and a movie what could be the worst that will happen?"

"Oh I don't know. Maybe the fact that every time we have had a conversation outside of this studio it has been mainly about you and how you're destined to make it big"

Taking both of my hands in his he smiled down at me. "Seriously Rach, just think about it" he said before bringing one of my hands up and laying a soft kiss on the top of it. I just stood there dumbfounded. I normally prided myself on my quick comebacks but today I couldn't think beyond the feel of his soft lips on my hand. When I finally came out of my daze I realized Jesse had left and my Dad was standing in front of me.

"Ready to go home sweetheart" he asked with a slightly concerned tone in his voice. I nodded my response afraid that my voice would give away the emotion that was swirling around inside of me.

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><p>Aside from my dad asking me how my day was, if my homework was completed and how ballet had gone the drive home was relatively silent. As a matter of fact dinner was pretty silent as well. My dad's talking mostly about work and telling me that they would be heading out of town for a few days in a couple of weeks.<p>

After dinner I said goodnight to them both and walked slowly to my room. I was tired but I knew that I had to complete my homework before I could finally put myself to bed. As I sat down at my desk I noticed the letter sitting to the side. I looked between it and my homework a few times before picking it up and re-reading it. I then grabbed a spare piece of paper and a pen from my bedazzled holder and began to write a response.

_Dear JB,_

_I'm glad to hear we're on the same page. I'm also sorry that you feel that way about the people who call themselves your "friends". That's part of the reason I don't associate with many people. They either use you or hurt you but enough of my dramatic tendencies towards friendship. The homework is insane! I usually don't mind the amount of homework the teachers give us during the school year but my goodness, what happened? It's as though they want us to fail our final year. I've barely made a dent in my homework and this pen-pal thing isn't helping. Just joking. I think I'm making progress. How about you? Have you gotten any done? And I really have to ask: what does JB stand for? Please don't tell me it is something like Justin Bieber or Jonas Brothers_

_Sincerely,  
>Anonymous<em>

Feeling satisfied with the letter, I folded it accordingly and slotted it into an envelope before writing down the return address that was on my envelope. I was slightly curious as to whether my pen pal was a male or female. It was quite hard to tell with the way that they wrote. I'll just wait for my new pen pal tell me.

Oh, my new pen pal.

They had only sent me one letter and I was already feeling a connection with them. Even though we are in two completely different situations, I can still relate. It seemed as though their "friends" were really missing out. Even though the first impression had been made, it could always change. They could turn out to be a total jerk and totally screw me over. That's usually what friends do anyway. Screw you over. I shook my head realizing that I shouldn't be thinking this way about someone I barely know. Putting the addressed envelope aside I picked up my chemistry text book and began to read trying to forget about JB for a few hours.


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